The Magnitude Scale
•First introduced by Hipparchus
•(160 - 127 B.C.):
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•Brightest stars: ~1st magnitude
•Faintest stars (unaided eye): 6th magnitude
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•More quantitative:
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•1st mag. stars appear 100 times brighter than 6th mag. stars •1 mag. difference gives a factor of 2.512 in apparent brightness (larger magnitude = fainter object!)
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